


As I Am

by scholarlydragon



Category: Lore Olympus (Webcomic)
Genre: Awkward, Breakfast in Bed, Cute, Gen, Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-19
Updated: 2018-12-19
Packaged: 2020-08-20 09:13:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20225404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scholarlydragon/pseuds/scholarlydragon
Summary: During breakfast in bed, questions arise.





	As I Am

Persephone stirred, the sound of a raised voice and excited barks breaking through the haze of sleepiness. She burrowed deeper into the pillows and pulled the blankets over her head. The chill of the underworld was difficult to take sometimes. Worse when the alternative was a warm, comfortable cocoon. Fortunately, she had nothing to do today other than enjoy sleeping in, since she had a rare simultaneous day off of both work and classes.

The edge of the bed dipped and a blue finger plucked up the edge of the blanket from her face, letting in a breath of cool air. Red eyes peered in at her. Hades grinned. “Good morning, sleepy. Hungry?”

Persephone squinted up at him, about to deny it and request to be left to her cocoon, when the smell of food hit her nose. Any answer she might have given was drowned by the sudden, undignified roar of her stomach. She blushed furiously as Hades chuckled.

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

The food did smell amazing. Persephone emerged slowly from the swath of blankets, keeping them pulled close around her shoulders, and looked over the offering of food. Scrambled eggs, buttered toast, grilled tomatoes, slices of avocado, enough for both of them plus bacon for him. A glass of juice for her and his steaming black coffee. All laden onto a tray balanced on the bedside table. Persephone smiled at him, “Thank you, Hades. This looks wonderful.”

He grinned, that unselfconscious smile that he used all too rarely, “I was hoping you’d think so.”

There was a scratching at the door and Cerberus padded in and over to the bed. He nosed inquisitively at the breakfast tray until Hades signaled to him to quit. With a muffled huff, Cerberus flopped his head onto the edge of the bed. Persephone reached over and scratched his ears, prompting a series of dull thuds as the dog’s tail thumped the floor.

She picked up a piece of toast, munching happily, as Hades lifted his coffee and sipped cautiously. “Kore. I’ve… been thinking,” he said quietly.

Persephone tilted her head, taking another bite of toast. He sounded so serious. “About what?”

“For all that I’m, er- that I’ve been around awhile, there’s a great deal that I don’t know. Work took so much of my time and after awhile, I gave short shrift to the idea that I might be anything other than lonely. Wealth and power of a king, but alone. Then there was you. Suddenly, my orderly lonely world wasn’t so orderly. Or lonely. For a long time, I had no idea how to handle it. But you showed me how, even when you didn’t realize.” He rubbed the back of his neck and set the coffee mug back on the tray, clasping his hands, almost fidgeting. He kept his gaze on his interlaced fingers. “Your sheer presence, let alone your love for me, has changed my world in ways I still can’t fathom.”

He glanced at Cerberus, who had been watching the both of them, and the dog stood with a stretch and a low  _ boof _ , propping his paws onto the edge of the bed and panting happily. Persephone chuckled, scratching along his jowls and getting sloppy dog kisses on her wrist in return. “I never set out to change anything, Hades, I just-” A glint of light in the dog’s dark fur caught her attention and she trailed off, squinting at it. “I just lo-”

The realization of what she was looking at hit her like a flood and Persephone snapped her eyes to Hades. He sat still, watching her carefully, a hopeful, vulnerable look in his eyes.

“I am aware I am far from perfect,” he said quietly, “There are probably gods better suited to the goddess of Spring than I. But you, my decadent springtime, have become the other half of me and I can’t imagine my life without you in it.” He reached out and unclasped the fine chain hidden in Cerberus’ fur, releasing the ring to fall into his hand. He held it out to her, the dark metal glinting in the light. “Kore, would you be my queen?”

Persephone stared at the ring for a long moment. “You’re asking me to be queen?”

He nodded hesitantly. She could see his throat work as he swallowed hard.

“I don’t care about being queen.” His face fell, but before he could speak, she went on with a grin, “I don’t care about a title. I care about you. Ask me again.”

A slow grin spread across his face. “Kore, would you  _ marry _ me?”

“ _ Yes _ .”

**Author's Note:**

> I suppose that I look different without the robes and crown  
I come this day before you with no riches, no renown  
For here I am no leader, I am just a humble man  
And I only ask you take me, you take me as I am
> 
> I'm not looking for perfection, I'm not offering a saint  
I'm not looking for a pretty bird to put in some restraint  
The only thing I want is that you love me if you can  
And I only ask you take me, you take me as I am
> 
> I offer you a look inside, I offer you that trust  
I need your strength to help me fight the battles that I must  
I need you to remind me of the light we bear within  
That there's more to life than struggle and the things we seek to win
> 
> Don't take me out of duty, don't take me out of pride  
Just take me if the man you see is one you'd stand beside  
I'm offering an open heart, I'm asking for your hand  
And I only ask you take me, you take me as I am
> 
> You take me as I am
> 
> -”As I Am” by Heather Dale


End file.
